Your shopping cart is empty!
Sale 10 % Off. Enter code HOL10 at checkout. (Add item to cart, click on black cart icon, then "VIEW CART", then "Use Coupon Code").
Christian Dior was a very prominent and influential designer of the 1950's. His fashion designs were accessorised with opulent feminine jewellery, including asymmetrical crystal necklaces, animal pins and tremblers specially commissioned for each collection. At first he created jewellery for specific clients such as Bette Davis and Marilyn Monroe, however jewellery designs were soon being produced under licence for Dior and sold in luxury stores. Dior was insistent that the quality of the jewellery would match that of the clothing. Only the best designers were used including Mitchel Maer, and Robert Goosens Dior developed the aurora borealis stone with Swarovski in 1955. Floral forms were a signature element in his work. Other forms were circus animals, unicorns, and fish. Dior pieces were always signed and dated and Dior vintage jewellery is much sought after by collectors. After Dior's death in 1957 Yves Saint Laurent was appointed as chief. He was followed by Mark Bohan, Gian Franco Ferre and John Galliano.The Dior fashion house remains a major global brand today. For more on Dior click here. 1963 Dior red crystale necklace 1950's Mitchel Maer for Dior necklace Dior crystal choker
Yves Saint Laurent became the lead designer for Christian Dior in 1958 at the age of 21. He started his own fashion house in 1961. His early earlier designs were considered very flamboyant and outrageous, however, by the early 1980's his designs were seen as classics in the fashion world. His began his jewellery line in the 1970's . It was theatrical and colourful in line with his wild clothing collections. The jewellery included ethnic beaded pieces, metal medallions, and whimisical enamels. Moving forward jewellery collections had a high quality opulent ethos with intricate patterns, elaborate metalwork, midnight hues and saturated tones. Designers such as Robert Goosens produced beautiful quality pieces for YSL which are much sought after today. All jewellery is signed with the YSL signature. For more on Yves Saint Laurent click here Rare YSL multi crystal necklace Rare YSL Arabesque style necklace YSL bronze heart brooch/pendant
The Givenchy fashion house opened in Paris in 1952 led by directory Hubert de Givenchy. It quickly became very influential and its elegant modern pieces were worn by famous film stars such as Lauren Bacall and Audrey Hepburn. Givenchy jewellery is typically made from heavy silver and gold plated metals, often adorned with glass, rhinestones, lucite, plastic beads and faux pearls. They are usually signed pieces. Givenchy retired in 1995 and John Galliano became the lead designer, followed by Riccardo Tisci in 2005. Since 2017 Givenchy has been owned by luxury conglomerate LVMH and the current artistic director is Claire Waight Kellar. Vintage Givenchy roman coin n Givenchy crystal hearts necklace Vintage Givenchy logo necklace gold plated necklace and earrings
Christian Lacroix was born in 1951 and originally studied history of art before becoming a fashion designer . He opened his French fashion house in 1987. From 1989 he produced haute couture collections and ready to wear costume jewellery to accessorise his clothing lines. The jewellery featured gold pieces in arresting shapes set with vibrantly coloured faux stones. Typical Lacroix pieces were jewel encrusted crosses and heavy ornate charm bracelets, all were signed. The fashion house went into administration in 2009.
L to R :Lacroix 1980's earrings, Lacroix 1970's ethnic inspired necklace , and Lacroix gilt, enamel ,crystal earrings
Lea Stein was born in Paris in 1931 and trained as an artist. She made buttons for the fashion industry and with her husband (a chemist) they began making buttons, using a material similar to Bakelite. This involved a process where layers of coloured cellulose acetate were bake bonded together. In 1969 Stein used this process to make costume jewellery adding fabric, lace, and metallic inclusions between layers to vary the composition of each piece. The end result was high impact 'plastic' jewellery. Each piece was unique. Signature pieces are the 'Fox ' pin. Most sought after by collectors are those from the L'ile aux Enfants range, and early pieces such as the 'Tennis Lady', 'Rolls Royce', 'French Sailor', and saxophone. More Lea Stein information here.
Lea Stein fox pin Lea Stein Rolls Royce pin Lea Stein brooches inc. tennis brooch - bottom right.
This German costume jewellery company established in 1855 is know for it's Art Deco work, however, it also produced jewellery in many other styles. In the early years of the 20th century Fahrner was a leading figure in jewellery design, employing a series of influential designers to work for the firm. The 'TF' trademark was introduced in 1901 and Fahrner began to export to England through Murrle, Bennet and Co. His work for this firm was often geometric or abstract, featuring elements such as stylised birds or plants. Items were marked with the stamps of both companies. When Theodor Fahrner died in 1919 the company was sold to Gustav Braendle. In 1922 Braendle's new collections featured marcasite and enamel jewellery, combined with semi precious stones. The firm's fabulous Art Deco pieces were given much acclaim. The geometric designs reflected the essence of the Art Deco movement and the Jazz age. Other pieces inspired by the Viennese painter Anton Kling used more expensive materials including semi precious stones and pearls. This type of Fahrner 'art jewellery' fetches high prices today. Green agate and black enamel combined with coral and onyx became signature colours for Fahrner and the Art Deco period.
Fahrner Art Deco pendant Fahrner 1920's art deco necklace Fahrner stylised silver and marcasite rose brooch
Coco Chanel opened her first fashion boutique in Paris in 1912. She promoted a chic new look for women with comfort and simplicity at its core. She began to produce jewellery decorated with inexpensive imitation stones and pearls, so that her clients could afford to accessorise and personalise their outfits. The jewellery was made to emphasise the faux quality of the stones. Strings of faux baroque pearls created a glamorous excessive look. By the 1920's her jewellery featured charm bracelets, jewelled belts, and gold and beaded chains. The jewellery featured clear and synthetic stones combined with real gemstones. They were designed to enhance the simple and elegant nature of her fashion collections. She collaborated with Maison Gripoix whose designs featured poured glass stones. She aslo worked with the Duke of Verdura to create some of the firm's classic pieces inlcuding enamelled and jewelled Maltese cross cuffs. After a 15 year self imposed exile in Switzerland during World War 2 she made a Parisien comeback. From 1955 onwards she worked with Robert Goosens creating iconic designs such as Byzantine style crosses on long chains of beads and pearls. Goosens also used rock crystal to lend delicacy to inexpensive pieces. For collectors the most desirable pieces are Maltese cross cuffs and pins, rosary style beaded pearl necklaces by Goosens, and floral inspired necklace and earring sets by Maison Gripoix. Chanel maltese cross cuffs Chanel brooch by Robert Goosens Chanel pearl detail necklace by Robert Goosens
Jakob Bengel's German company was founded in 1873 and first made watch chains. However, in the late 1920's they began to make art deco costume jewellery. Some pieces were decorated with crystal or rhinestones and were intended to be worn with silk or velvet cords which were fashionable at the time.Most of the companies output however, comprised bold pieces in chrome and geometric shapes made of coloured Galalith. These were usually hung on 'brickwork' chains which highlighted the machine aesthetic of the jewellery. These pieces were created by top designers such as Willhelm Wagenfeld. They were extremely popular both in Germany and abroad. Bengel had his own makers mark (an oval depicting a cannon and a pyramid of cannon balls), however this is rarely seen on exported pieces. When World War 2 started the production of Galalith for non essentials was prohibted and the company ceased production .
Cristobal is an internationally acclaimed retailer of costume jewellery. The firm was founded in 1986 in London by Steven Miners and Yai Thammachote. In the late 1990's four limited edition designs were released.These were known as 'The Butterfly Collection', 'Secret Garden Collection', 'The Xmas Collection', and 'The London Collection'. The London collection comprised mostly necklaces while the first 3 were mostly pins. All four collections featured beautiful high quality Austrian rhinestones (dating from the 1940's and 50's) in bold new settings. They are very sought after by collectors. Cristobal butterfly rhinestone pin Cristobal by Gripoix poured Brooch from "the Xmas collection" glass brooch
After their market stall proved successful Nicky Butler and Simon Wilson opened a shop in London's Kings Road in 1972. They designed costume jewellery based on their knowledge of period treasures and their experience in handling vintage and antique jewellery. They reinvented vintage designs for the modern market. Influences came from vintage, Oriental and Indian design. Favoured materials were crystals, pave set rhinestones, faceted beads, semi precious stones and quartzes. Bases included rhodium, gunmetal, and gold and silver plated metals. Teddy bears, champagne glasses, spiders, bows, crowns, lizards and monkeys all feature in the firm's work. The power dressing of the 1980's required bold costume jewellery and Butler and Wilson contributed with huge jewelled bib necklaces and diamante brooches and pins. Celebrities snapped up the jewellery. Butler and Wilson's charming Xmas range including Santa's and reindeers is very popular. The early work is much sought after including the teddy bear, spider and lizard pins.
In the late 1950's and the 1960's ornate beaded jewellery became the height of fashion. Jewellery designer Lyda Toppo started up her costume jewellery company in Milan, Italy in 1946, where she worked with her brother Bruno Coppola. The early work comprised multi strand strings of beads .They used locally sourced Murano beads and Austrian crystal. The delicate use of graduated coloured beads became a signature of the company. Clasps were higly ornnamental , and often heart shaped. The style of the company was tailored and classic. Necklaces and bracelets used exquisite beads with the companys signature 'Made in Italy by Coppola e Toppo' stamped on the clasp. Earrings were usually marked with a cut out star on the clip. Coppola and Toppola jewellery is highly sought after and very expensive . In 2006 a New York auction house sold a collar and two bracelet demi parure for £7200.
Vivienne Westwood is famous for her collections of punk rock and bondage inspired clothing. Born in 1941, she started designing professionally in 1971. During the punk era Westwoods's designs inlcuded bicycle chains, safety pins, and spiked dog collars worn as jewellery. Her 1980's jewellery line was much more sedate in comparison. It featured hearts, bows, and traditional royal symbols such as crowns and orbs. The jewellery was created from silver or gold plated pewter and was decorated with faux pearls and Swarovski crystals
Jeanne Lanvin was born in 1867. She started her career as a milliner and then joined the Paris Syndicat de la Couture (a school for aspiring designers) in 1909. She proceeded to become one of the most influential designers of the 1920' and 1930's. These days the best known Lanvin costume jewellery is a range of metal and plastic pendants. These were made during the 1960's and 70's and exhibited geometric forms which reflected the space age ethos of the time. A particularly sought after item is an interchangeable pendant necklace worn often by British actress Keira Knightly in the early 2000's .
Robert Goosens was a renowned French based jewellery designer. He served an apprenticeship in jewellery making in his youth where, he perfected the techniques of engraving, casting and embossing semi-precious and simulated stones into silver and gold metals. He went on to work with some of the top jewellery brands, producing beautiful quality jewellery over a career spanning decades . Goosen's designs were strongly influenced by artifacts in paintings seen in Paris musuems. He travelled a lot often bringing back stones including amethysts, sapphires, rubies, chalcedony and coral. Rock crystal was a stone that featured in his designs and became his favouite material. He is probably best know for his work with Chanel. He helped create many of the iconic Chanel pieces such as her Byzantine crosses and three hoop earrings. Goosens also created other jewellery inspired by ancient civilisations for several famous brands including Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior and Cristobal Balenciaga.
Henkel and Grosse was founded by Heinrich Henkel and Florentine Grosse in Pforzheim, Germany in 1907. Initially the company made only gold settings. However, from 1920 they began making costume jewellery for the European market, moving into the American market from the late 1920's. After Word War 2 the company became know as "Grosse". In 1955 it became the main manufacturer for Dior. They were employed to create four annual collections. The jewellery comprised gold and rhodium plated metals prong set with clear and coloured rhinestones, lapis, turquoise, ruby and faux pearls. From 1958 all the jewellery was signed and dated whether from the Dior or Grosse collections.
Further Related Reading:
https://www.modernvintagestyle.co.uk/blog-section/The-Complete-Guide-to-Bracelet-Styles
